OnePlus One officially, finally and fully unveiled

It’s been a veeeery long and arguably frustrating wait, but the OnePlus One has finally been unveiled for the world to see. The beaut you see up above is the first device built specifically for CyanogenMod, and while the tactic of trickled specs kept us on the edge of our seats, there’s nothing quite like seeing a full spec listing.

OnePlus One Software and Features

That last one is the big kicker, because it’s the software where OnePlus and CyanogenMod’s values truly shine. Their boisterous condemnation of carrier bloatware and unnecessary features were paramount to creating a device users would want. Well, that and a device that packs as much cutting edge silicon that it can inside a 5.5-inch frame.

CyanogenMod features all the key staples of the existing after-market ROM, except it has a different, special coat of pain designed specifically for the OnePlus One. A staggering thousand or so themes will be available for you to customize with thanks to the built-in themes engine.

Secure encrypted texting between other CyanogenMod or TextSecure users ensures privacy. Privacy Guard lets you control which apps get access to which data. We’ll even be treated to a feature that allows you to activate your phone’s voice commands without having to touch it.

It’s all part of CyanogenMod’s latest commitment — to be open, secure, and extremely customizable. Seems they hit all the marks on this one.

OnePlus One Pricing and Availability

So when? Where? How much? And how to buy it? Thankfully they aren’t pussyfooting with that information. The device will be coming to

Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, United Kingdom, and the United States. The 16GB Silk White model will run you an absolutely insane $299/€269, while the 64GB Sandstone Black can be had for $349/€299.

We honestly thought they’d go with the $399.99 price point to stay under their goal of delivering a device that costs less than $400, but this is a whole different level of value. Unfortunately the “how” of it all is still based on an invite only system.

Aside from the handful of users who have already gotten an invite code through a recent OnePlus One forum contest, users will be able to get a chance to “smash” their phone. Dubbed the OnePlus One Phone Smash, the company will select 100 users — at random — to smash their phones and buy the OnePlus One.

Doesn’t make sense if you were planning to trade your current phone in to pay for the device, right? That’s why those same 100 people will be able to grab it for a mere dollar.

Anyone beyond that will need an invite for now, so you’d better make friends with one of those 100 lucky people as they’ll be the only ones with invite codes to buy the phone at full price. It’s not the most popular system among our readership, but hey — for what you’re getting at the cost you’re paying, there’s little else to complain about.

Featured

The pricing is just insane. Worth buying and trying out even if it doesn’t become my daily use phone. At the very least, it would be a massively specked backup phone.

namesib

I’m disappointed that they are encouraging needless waste, especially of a device with components that are major environmental problems in many parts of the world. It is very irresponsible of any company to run such an event.

robjackson81

Care to elaborate?

namesib

On what? Look up e-waste. I don’t expect to see any company (especially a tech one) overlooking this major social and environmental problem and creating a promotional event that contributes to it. Asking people to smash a perfectly functional device (without taking into account what will happen to that now useless device) is an irresponsible practice.

Guru Tim

You can still recycle smashed phones, just not their screens. It’s not as if they’re asking you to blow them up..

http://twitter.com/Vanakatherock Vanakatherock

I can agree with him to an extent. If you want someone to smash a phone for a promotional purpose, what are the people with a non-removable battery going to do for safety?

Guru Tim

The same thing they’d do even if they didn’t smash it lol….

Durin123

You’ve forgotten that you’re writing an article that is read by an American majority. Trust me, some of them will blow up phones. Not to get a Oneplus but just because their level of stupidity is only surpassed by their level of arrogance.

james macy

Id shoot mine with a .308 with an exploding target behind it but then id get called a senseless redneck. Only 100 people get picked at random then they send in their video of their phone being smashed. They dont smash their phone and then get picked

Durin123

I don’t understand the purpose of your comment.

AmericanPatriot4

What country do you live in?

Durin123

I’m not even remotely interested in telling someone with the nickname “americanpatriot4″ about my origins. Haha, if I didn’t know any better I’d say you were trying to troll me into revealing personal information. Unfortunately you suffer from a very serious condition called nationalism/patriotism. Only known cure is years of therapy in the practices of humility, humanity and reasonability.

AmericanPatriot4

Maybe I can call myself a patriot because I serve my country? Something you probably wouldn’t have the testicles for.

I love my country, and I’m not ashamed to say it. Looks like you are too embarrassed of your nation to even name it. But any-who… how about lay off the “out of left field” insults to my country, lest someone suspect you have an inferior complex or something.

PoisonApple31

Some will hit batteries with hammers and inhale the dark smoke that comes out of them. :P

MathewNidel

It’s only a hundred for a promotion. Don’t be captain bringdown.

namesib

100 winners; possibly many more applicants.

Mark

I see a lot of poo poo on what he is saying… we are wasting 100 phones that will likely be disposed of in a very environmentally unfriendly way.

I am amazed that a lot of people would rather smash their phone and get a new one and then not care about what happens because it’s not their problem anymore…just toss it in the bin.. out of sight and mind.

It’s one thing to drop it on the ground and break it by accident… this is just malicious…. 100 phones or not it just contributes to the problem….

No_Nickname90

They ain’t even ready. Get a dummy phone and smash that. Mmmmhmmm!!

Guest

As the great George Carlin once said ” The planet will be fine, the people are fucked.”

Durin123

Thank you, universe, for people like George Carlin and yourself.

萨夫 侯赛因

So there is no 50mp camera..

CGS

I just bought an M8 and am perfectly happy with it…yet I’m totally tempted to buy this, just to own it and play with it. Dat spec list tho…

Phaz0n

Looks strikingly similar to a Nexus 5.

mcl630

Other than the basic shape, not at all.

lordmerovingian

First off, the pricing is commendable. The 64GB is the sure one to get.

“Their boisterous condemnation of carrier bloatware and unnecessary features were paramount to creating a device users would want.”

One man’s meat is another man’s poison, or so they say. I find CM ROMS full of unnecessary bloat/crap as well.

(Would have been nice to try it out, but it’s my fault for being on a CDMA carrier.)

Nathan Bryant

You can always look at reviews when they start rolling in to have a better judgement.

MIKEEEEE

any idea what carriers it will support?

http://twitter.com/Vanakatherock Vanakatherock

GSM carriers.

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

Shut up and take my money!

crocop24

A phone with a screen smaller than the note 3, by 0.2″….yet its taller??

it can’t exactly be called flagship killer, but it can still be a spectacular value.

malcmilli

well i would still consider it a potential flagship killer because there a are a number of flagships without those features you mentioned.

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

It’s half the price, has a newer SoC and GPU and an insanely better camera. Oh, and no Samsung bullshit bloatware. Tell me more why the Note 3 is better?

crocop24

SD slot, removable battery, smaller, better screen.

Tell me more why your face in your picture is so punchable?

J Cav the Great

I disagree with your Note 3 points…but that ending comment has me ROFL!!!!

No_Nickname90

A removable battery that dies in like 6 months.

Yea, I’m never trusting Samsung on their batteries for a while.

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

Who the hell uses an SD card? It needs to die. Even Google doesn’t want to support it any more. Who the hell needs a removable battery? I’ve never carried around more than 1 battery even on my sad Galaxy Nexus that died in just a few hours. As for the screen comment – you’re drunk. Tell me more about modern technology that you don’t understand?

MineIsBetterThanYours

SD card needs to die? Oh, I get it.. you’re head’s up in the “Cloud”. A utopia for areas with perfect service and the carriers with tiered data plans. Yah NO THANKS. I’ll keep my SD card with 64GB of tunes for a roadtrip which is mighty nice to have. Stop forgiving people for cheapening your phone! SD card slot HEAVILY influences my phone decision. I’m not going without unless 128GB internal memory becomes standard and that will need to go up in two years and so on. By all means, have fun with 16GB (for everything) phones. ;)

crocop24

^This

Derek Ross is a tool. Looks like one and is brainwashed by what google is feeding. His profile pic tells you all you need to know.

Durin123

That comment tells me all I need to know about you (mainly that your comment reveals a deep-seated hatred of people). I suggest a psychiatric session or ten.

rick slick

Apparently you’re are the fool here, like Derek.

Chris Eager

Where’s your profile pic? Not sure you should be passing judgement on his when you don’t even post one. Looks to me like he’s happy to be wearing Glass and purposely making an exaggerated goofy face as a joke.
Everyone on this forum is a geek in some way…that’s why we’re here. I, for example, am over 6′ 3″, weigh 280 lbs, ride a hog, drive a semi, operate heavy machinery and could probably crush you into a fine dust…you wouldn’t know me as a tech nerd in person.
…just sayin’.

crocop24

Sounds like you need a diet forum more than anything.

Chris Eager

No, I could probably go a little easier at the bench press though.
….assumptions, nuff said. You don’t deserve to be here.

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

I haven’t owned a phone with an SD card since 2010. 16GB is plenty of storage because as you said, I live in the cloud. I don’t need endless movies and music on my device. When I need offline access, I can easily pin Google Music or Play Movies directly to my device. Boom. Done.

The SD card is the mobile equivalent of a floppy drive and needs to just die. It’s a horrible for developers due to many variables. SD Cards can be slow, which could result in bad app performance. You can swap them or remove them which could break apps for case them to act oddly if they were expecting an SD card and one isn’t there or a new one with different data is there.

Google isn’t supporting them on Nexus devices and keeps doing things to axe them in new versions of Android. If you want tons of storage, buy a phone with tons of storage. In the end, don’t buy this phone if you don’t want it. The choice is yours.

MineIsBetterThanYours

To each their own, though the floppy was later demonized as “the floppy” because of it’s diminutive capacity and slow speed. With 64GB a “norm” for SD cards in phones and I don’t see one getting faster data transfer through a cloud or Wi-Fi than a GOOD hi-speed SD card, HOW is it similar to the floppy “which needs to die?” The only thing that’s similar is they’re portable, which we all know is a terrible thing! LOL

rick slick

That’s because you’re narrow minded and useless, Derek Ross.

http://google.com SRC9

What happens if you dont have internet access then?

Chris Eager

Yeah I’m done with SD cards too…too slow and they get corrupt after awhile. Had the Nexus 4 and now the 5 and I don’t miss SD cards.
For the $1.99/month for 100 gigs of Google Drive, why wouldn’t you?…for piece-of-mind, even if you still use an SD?

rick slick

I don’t understand idiots like Derek Ross. Don’t like SD cards / removable battery, don’t freaking have to use it dummies… but why bemoan the option to flexibly increase storage and swap out batteries for those who find it very useful? There’s a reason HTC sales are far less than Samsung, because Samsung offers SD and removable batteries!!

crocop24

ok

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

Ah, I’m starting to see what’s going on here. You want a higher quality version for fapping. :)

I agree its nice to have a sd card, but with the 64gb variant and my google and lookout back ups plus an extra media back up on my computer there isnt really a need for a sd card

rick slick

You, Derek Ross, are a fool. Just because you don’t need a SD card does not mean millions of others either. Many of us prefer the flexibility and cheap option of increasing storage space for photos and videos (one of the most common space fillers over time) on cheap SD cards. Don’t be so presumptive, you fool.

ChangWizzle

The ’90s called. They want their cellphone back. -SMH-

Durin123

Even Caligula would be asking: “What the f&*% are you talking about?”

sc0rch3d

compared this thing on phonearena to my motoX…. thought i was gonna spit my drink on the screen. now we know what #neversettle meant in terms of size. just another “spec-war” phone that they’ve managed to sell for cheap.

davianny

Pain? Lol “CyanogenMod features all the key staples of the existing after-market ROM, except it has a different, special coat of pain designed specifically for the OnePlus One.”

SorinDobrin

Yeah..No pain, No gain!

Squeak

Much awesome. Small dollar. Singular inquiry. Does it have 4G?

crocop24

so original.

james macy

Yes it supports 4g lte

Chris Eager

Where did you read that? Funny, no mention of it here.

james macy

Go to the official oneplus.net they bave full spec sheets as well as forums. It has all LTE cept for band 20

Chris Eager

Thank you.

Durin123

That meme is kinda terrible in general. It’s not even funny.

jake

lmao, that is so freakin’ hilarious!

Nathan Bryant

Why are they doing this invite thing again?

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

Because there’s no way for them to determine the demand seeing as they’re a brand new company without their own production line and limited funds.

mcl630

Wouldn’t pre-orders or a waiting list be a better option? I don’t see how invites would tell them anything, there’s no way for someone to say they want one.

aranea100

If only it wasn’t for the invite.

danix180

Best Phablet ever !!!

Too bad I’m not in the market for one :(

Matchstick

No support for 800MHz GSM/3G or LTE Band 20 is a potentially serious problem for anyone planning to use the phone in Europe.

WTF would they push the boat out on all the other specs but scrimp on that ?

ineptone

Does anyone know whether or not this device has wireless charging? After experiencing its joys with my Nexus 5, which I haven’t plugged a wire into during the six months I’ve owned it, I can’t imaging not having it as a feature in future devices.

http://google.com/+derekross Derek Ross

No wireless charging :(

ratnok

Never settle.

JaswinderSinghJammu

Looks like a great device for the specs and price point. People always have something to complaint about

Jeff

Canada!?!
Awesome specs, look, price, size and software. Im still happy with my Note 3 but i would definetly consider it if i was in the market!

Durin123

Canadians aren’t relevant to anyone or anything on this planet except when people want our oil. Sad but true (I also happen to disagree with that sentiment towards the country and people in it).

Jeff

I think that there are a great market in canada for cellphone… Maybe this one is too underground for us :/

Chris Eager

Yeah well, haven’t you heard?…we’re just an extension of the United States. Perhaps in another hundred years or so, when our population growth hits that of some of the other countries mentioned above (Canada is very multicultural driven), we won’t be forgotten by big brother.

spicymeatball

Take my money! Great phone at an amazing price.

http://google.com SRC9

Any chance of this in the UK??

flamencoguy

You will be able to order this from dozens of websites. I have ordered a few phones before.